Character/Pairing: Ten/Rose
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: The BBC owns all, I am merely borrowing.
Spoilers: Through Voyage of the Damned.
Author's Notes: Follows soon after Choices We Made. The Doctor, Rose and their daughter settle into life on board the TARDIS. Each part of this story contains a series of connected vignettes that cover the five years between CWM and a sequel.

PARADOX

Hope sighed with relief as she dipped her bare feet in the cool water of the fountain. She had been waiting for her parents for only a few minutes, but the afternoon heat was suffocating in the plaza. She placed her sandals on the tiled edge of the fountain and sat beside them, swishing her feet in the water. They'd stopped on the mediterranean planet for only a short holiday, but of course her father had discovered something that required investigation.

Hearing a distant rumble, she wondered if a thunderstorm might be developing and reached into her pocket for her sonic screwdriver to find out. Before she could take any readings, a young woman with ginger hair ran into the plaza, stopping short at the sight of the girl in the fountain.

"Hello," greeted Hope, quickly stashing her screwdriver back in the pocket of her jeans.

"Oh," the woman said. "I wondered when this would happen."

"M'not suppose to talk to strangers," Hope stated, tilting her head as she inspected the woman. "You're...familiar. But I don't remember you."

Before the woman could respond, a tall man careened into the plaza, skidding to a halt next to them.

"Why'd you stop?" he gasped, brushing unkempt brown hair out of his eyes. "They're still chasin' us!"

"I think...I'm lost," the woman determined, worrying her lip as she stared at Hope.

Hope gaped at the man, bewildered by his uncanny resemblance to her father.

"We haven't wandered that far," the man determined. "Not like that time on Dynonia when we..."

"Not me me. Her, me," the woman explained pointing at Hope.

"You can't be me," Hope said with a frown. "You don't look like me."

The man leaned forward to inspect the ginger woman at close range. "How hard did that Judoon hit you?"

She pushed him away, exasperated. "That's me, you idiot!"

"Are you sure?"

The sound of marching feet echoed through the plaza and both of them turned toward the sound.

"I don't think our diversion worked," the man said with a sigh. "I thought for sure this time..."

"Right." The woman reached into the battered messenger bag slung across her shoulder. "It's in here somewhere. As soon as I find it, we can..."

"Never mind that. We've got to run," the man interrupted. "Now, preferably!"

"Not before I...ha!" Grinning, the woman pulled out a golden bracelet and offered it to Hope. "Here! Take it. You're going to need it."

There was such urgency in the woman's tone, that Hope accepted the bracelet without hesitation. She couldn't explain it, but she felt like she could trust these strangers. The moment her fingers touched the warm metal, she knew she'd made the right choice. "What is it?"

"It's..."

"We've really got to go," the man interrupted, grabbing the woman's hand and tugging on it for good measure.

The woman sighed. "I'm sorry there isn't more time. There never is. Ask the Doctor."

And then they were gone, disappearing into the streets beyond the plaza. A split second after they vanished, Hope heard voices from the opposite direction and quickly stuffed the bracelet into one of her pockets.

"Hope!" the Doctor exclaimed, coming to a halt in front of the fountain. "Bit of a discrepancy and, well, Judoon, who are making it far more complicated than it needs to be. Regardless of what we could be doing to help, we should really probably..."

"Run?" Rose supplied, stopping beside him.

"Yes, exactly," the Doctor agreed, pointing to one of the many streets that connected to the plaza. "That street. Or...was it that one? Maybe..."

"You don't know?" She sighed, before continuing in a perfect imitation of his voice, "Oh, you don't need to look at that street sign, Rose. I know exactly where the TARDIS is at all times."

"Yes, well...most of the time," the Doctor grumbled. "Oh! That one! Definitely, that one."

Rose rolled her eyes and took Hope's hand, helping her out of the fountain. "C'mon, sweetheart. Let's see how many tries it takes him."

Hope remained awake late into the night, staring at the gold bracelet, waiting until her father would be the only one still wandering the ship. Donning a robe over her pajamas, she slipped into the dimly lit hallway and shuffled past several rooms, peering inside. Finally, she found him in the kitchen, nursing a cup of tea while he flipped through a large manual.

He glanced up as she stepped into the room. "You should be in bed."

"Yeah," she admitted, tugging on her braid. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Course you can." He closed the book and set it aside. "Must be pretty serious to keep you awake after all that running. What is it?"

Slowly, Hope climbed onto the chair beside him. She swung her legs back and forth, taking a moment to gather enough courage to show him the bracelet still hidden behind her back.

"Whatever it is, sweetheart, you can tell me," he encouraged, touching her knee.

She took a deep breath and revealed the bracelet.

The Doctor almost fell off his chair, teetering precariously before he managed to grab the table and steady himself. "How did you...? Where did you...?"

"Is it bad?" she asked, eyes wide. "Dangerous?"

"No, no, no, no, no, no. Definitely not. I just..." He tugged at his hair. "I didn't think there were any left. Didn't think it was possible that..."

"There was this woman. When I was in the plaza with the fountain. She said I'd need it," Hope quickly explained. "She...said she was me. But she didn't look like me."

"Oh," the Doctor said, not sounding nearly as surprised by the woman's crazy assertion.

"Do you know what it is?"

"Of course I do. It's a time ring." He adjusted his glasses and held out his hand. "Gave my last one to a Dalek."

"A what?" she asked, handing him the bracelet.

"Old enemy. You'll never meet one if I have anything to do with it." He turned the bracelet over in his hands, inspecting the surface. "Works like a vortex manipulator. But you won't be queasy afterwards. And you'll land in the right century. Although this one would of been outdated when I was at the Academy. Bit of an antique, really."

"Will it work?" she asked eagerly. "Can you show me how?"

He hesitated. "Well..."

"Please. That woman said I'd need it and..."

He sighed, setting the bracelet carefully on the table. "I think we should keep this just between us. For now. Your mum will worry."

Hope's triumphant grin was immediately replaced with an enormous yawn.

"To bed," the Doctor ordered sternly, ruffling her hair.

Sleepily, Hope nodded, sliding off the chair and stumbling to the door. "Oh. There was a man, too. With the woman in the plaza. Sounded like they were related. He looked like..."

"Crossing personal timelines is very dangerous," the Doctor quickly interrupted. "You're likely to see a slice of your future you're not meant to know."

He was both relieved and disappointed when Hope took his advice, saying no more about the strangers in the plaza. He hadn't yet told her about regeneration, but he was running out of excuses. Especially if she'd really just met a future version of herself. A future version of herself with a sibling.

He'd been reluctant, but Rose had convinced him they should try for another child. Only, he hadn't been lying when he said it was next to impossible. Hope was a bit of a miracle and it was very probable she'd be the only one. But what if...

Shaking his head, he refocused on the intricately engraved bracelet on the table. A time ring. Handy in a pinch for a quick trip, but not suitable for much else. He didn't want to consider when his daughter would ever need to use one.

They'd parked on Earth for only a quick supply run, but it turned out that the Doctor had a surprisingly long list of parts to find. So Rose took Hope to a small park to spend the afternoon. Hope was soon occupied with a very elaborate construction in the sand box, calmly threatening any of the other children who tried to interfere. She'd finished building about half of what she had planned when she spotted her father on the nearby path. Grinning, she jumped out of the sand and ran over to him.

"Dad! You said you'd be gone for hours! Did you find what you needed? You must've! Mum said I should play hide an' seek with the other kids, but I always win and they hate it. S'not my fault they always hide in the most logical places. So, I've been building a scale model of the..." Hope paused mid-ramble as she noticed the oddly blank look on his face. "Are you all right?" She tugged on his sleeve. "Dad...?"

"Doctor!"

He spun around, gaping at the approaching woman as if she was the most impossible thing in several universes.

"Knew you couldn't keep away. Soon as I said we were gettin' ice cream, you'd be sneaking back an'..." Grinning, Rose tapped his chest with her finger.

Frantically, the Doctor backed away, tripping over the edge of the sand box and landing sprawled on top of what had been an elaborate sand castle.

"Oh, drat," said Hope. "That'll take at least four hours and twenty-three minutes to fix. Maybe twenty-four. Twenty-five?"

The Doctor, however, appeared to have lost the awareness that anyone existed other than the blonde woman in front of him.

"Doctor?" Rose prompted, watching him with concern.

"End of the world," he announced. "It's got to be."

"What?"

"You're here."

It was then that Rose noticed he was wearing the blue suit and there were dark circles under his eyes. "Hope, sweetheart, can you give us a minute? Please."

Reluctantly, Hope left them alone, retreating to the swing set several yards away.

Turning back to the fallen alien, Rose offered her hand to help him stand. "I'm real. Promise."

He swallowed, staring at her hand for a long moment before he took hold of it. As soon as he was standing, he threw his arms around her, hugging her so tight she could barely breathe.

"Rose..." he whispered, voice hoarse with desperation.

"I'm here," she murmured, burying her face in his jacket. "You smell like smoke."

"Funeral pyre. I had to...after the Master...there was no one else."

"Who?" she asked, before she could stop herself. "No, wait. Maybe it hasn't happened yet. Where am I?"

"Parallel universe. Forever." He shook his head, hugging her even tighter. "You shouldn't be here."

"But I am," she said, touching his cheek. "Not everything's as impossible as you think it is."

His eyes had fallen shut at the contact, but he slowly opened them, glancing at Hope on the swings. "No, I guess not." He sighed. "You can ask me anything. I'll have to forget anyway."

"Oh. Right." She didn't want to think about him having to endure the pain of their separation despite having stumbled across his future. "Can you remember one thing?"

"What?"

"Find me."

"I will." He grinned, the weight of so many years spent alone already beginning to fade. "Obviously."

"Prat," she teased.

"That too," he agreed. "Considering how long it's been since I lost you. And how long it might still be before I figure out how to get you back. Is it...very long?"

"I dunno," she admitted. "You don't like talking about it."

"Quite right too." He pried one hand away to ruffle his hair. "Oh...you'd better not tell future me. He's going to be extremely upset if he doesn't remember."

Before she could ask why, he was kissing her with a fervor that would no doubt make his future self very jealous.